Tablet dispenser



April 16, 1957 E. v. TAYLOR TABLET DISPENSER Filed April 29, 1954 INVENTOR EUGENE VTAYLOR 2 BY fi LM *2 a ATTORNEYS.

Unite TABLET DISPENSER Eugene V. Taylor, Chicago, Ill.

Application April 29, 1954, Serial No. 426,453

3 Claims. (Cl. 206-42) become embarrassed when in public they have to remove tablets from bottles and the like.

It is an object of my present invention to provide a tablet dispenser wherein a variety of tablets of different medicinal content may be carried simultaneously, and a single tablet of the desired variety selected as required.

The foregoing object is accomplished by providing a tablet dispenser comprising a plurality of stacked tablet supporting trays each of which is adapted to carry one or more tablets of the same or different medicinal content. In addition, the trays are adapted to be swung individual to a position whereby individual tablets previously loaded therein may be conveniently withdrawn.

It is a feature of my present invention that the tablet dispenser is adapted to be combined with a common accessory article such as a lipstick tube or the like in order that the dispenser may be readily located in a pocket or purse and manipulated inconspicuously anywhere for dispensing a tablet.

Now in order to acquaint those skilled in the art with the manner of constructing and using tablet dispensers in accordance with the principles of my present invention, I shall describe in connection with the accompanying drawing a preferred embodiment of my invention.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view taken along the lines 1-1 in Figures 3, 4 and 5, looking in the directions indicated by the arrows, and shows the internal mechanism of the tablet dispenser of my present invention;

Figure 2 is a vertical partial sectional view taken along the line 22 in Figure 4, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows, and in full lines shows the tablet carrying trays and the pivotal mounting therefor;

Figure 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken along the line 33 in Figure 1, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows, and shows one embodiment of tablet carrying tray employed in my invention;

States Patent (3 F 2,788,89 1 Patented Apr. 16, 1957 accessory article such as a lipstick tube or the like, preferably comprises a semi-cylindrical body member 10 hav ing an integral lower circumferentially continuous band portion 12. The upper and lower ends of the body member 10 respectively are stamped or otherwise formed to define upper and lower guide channels 14 and 16, which receive the upper and lower flanged ends of a semi-cylindrical slidable wall 18. As shown in Figure 5, the slidable wall 18 has a circumferential extent greater than that of the main portion of the body member 10.

The lower end of the body member 10 is secured in V the throat portion 20 of the upper bell shaped end portion Figure 4 is a horizontal sectional view taken along the 22 of a cylindrical adaptor 24. The lower end of the adaptor 24 is adapted, for example, to be pressed by hand upon one end of a tubular accessory article such as a lipstick tube 26 which, for purposes of exemplification, is shown diagrammatically in dot dash lines in Figure l. The crosssection of the lower end of the adaptor 24 may be varied to accommodate accessory articles of various shapes. The uppermost enlarged end portion of the bell shaped portion 22 of the adaptor 24 envelops the lower portion of the slidable wall 18 for preventing the latter from snapping out of the lower guide channel 16.

A cover member 28 is provided at the upper end of the dispenser and is formed with a depressed central portion 30 that is secured in the upper end of the body member 10. The rim of the cover member 28 is flanged downwardly at 32 and envelops the upper portion of the slid able wall 18 for preventing the latter from snapping out of the upper guide channel 14. A cap member 34 is snap fitted into the depressed portion 30 of the cover member 28.

Arranged intermediate of the cover member 28 and the band portion 12 of the body member 10 is a plurality of stacked tablet supporting or carrying trays 36 and 38. The trays 36 and 38 are each formed with axially aligned side bosses 46 that have openings therein for receiving a pin member 42. The pin 42 is secured at its upper end in the cover member 28 immediately adjacent the flange 32, and at its lower end in an enlarged portion of the bell shaped end 22 of the adaptor 24 adjacent the band portion 12 of the body 10.

The tablet supporting trays 36 and 38 are formed with one or more tablet receiving recess 44. By Way of exemplification and not limitation, the top two trays 36 are formed with three tablet recesses, while the remaining trays 38 are formed with four recesses each. The shape and size of the tablet recesses may be varied to accommodate various types of tablets, pills and capsules. The trays 36 and 33 are each notched at 46 for the receipt of a finger nail whereby the trays may be swung individually about the pin 42 from the position shown in Figure 4 to the position shown in Figure 5. The notches 46 may be staggered in a circumferential direction to facilitate their engagement by a finger nail.

In assembling the tablet dispenser of my present invention, the slidable wall 18 is snapped about the body member 19 with the flanged ends of the former being disposed in the guide channels 14 and 16 of the latter. Then the lower end of the body member 19 is secured in the throat portion 2% of the adaptor 24. At this point a plurality of tablet receiving trays, which are stacked in the desired order, have the pin member 42 inserted through the openings in the bosses at), and the lower end of the pin member 42 is positioned between the band portion 12 of the body member 10 and the bell shaped portion 22 of the adaptor 24. Next the cover member 28 is properly positioned and the depressed portion 3 8 suitably secured to the upper rim of the body member 10. Finally the cap member 3-!- is snapped into the depressed portion 33 of the cover member 28 for completing the assembly.

In using the tablet dispenser of my present invention,

the wall 18 is rotated to the position shown in Figure and the trays 36 and 38 are individually pivoted to the position shown in the latter figure, filled with the desired tablets, and then pivoted back to the position shown in Figures 1 through 4. After the trays 36 and 38 have been filled with tablets, and pivoted back to theirnormal posi-. tion within the confines of the body member 10, the slid.- able wall 18 may be rotated from the position shown in Figure 5 to the position shown in Figures 3 and 4. The

wall 18 and body member serve to define a closed receptacle for confining the trays 36 and 33 in their normal positions. The dispenser may be pressed onto the end of a lipstick tube or the like either before or after the trays are initially filled with tablets.

It of course will be understood that when it is desired to remove a tablet from the dispenser, the slidable wall 18 need only be rotated from the position shown in Figures 3 and 4 to the position shown in Figure 5. Then the notch 46 of the desired tray may be engaged with the finger nail and force applied so as to pivot the tray away from the confines of the body member 10, whereupon a tablet or tablets may be selected from the tablet recessses 44. After the tablets have been selected, the tray may be swung back to its normal position and the slidable wall 18 rotated back to the position shown in Figures 3 and 4.-

From the foregoing description, it should be quite apparent that the diminutive tablet dispenser of my pres ent invention when combined with a lipstick tube or the like may be readily and conveniently carried in a purse or pocket and easily located when a tablet is desired. Moreover, since the tablet dispenser is adapted for em bodiment with a common article such as a lipstick tube, the lipstick dispenser may be manipulated inconspiciously anywhere for dispensing tablets.

It should further be noted that the several tablet recesses in each tray may be filled with the same or different tablets. For example, the trays may be filled with saccharin, aspirin and/or vitamin tablets. Moreover, each tray may be filled with tablets of the same medicinal content and suitable indicia marked on the exposed surfaces of the trays. 'With this arrangement, any one of a variety of tablets of difierent medicinal content may be quickly selected from the dispenser.

Now while I have shown and described what I believe to be a preferred embodiment of my present invention, it will be understood that various rearrangements and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention.

1 claim:

1. A tablet dispenser comprising a semi-cylindrical body member having a circumferential extent substantially equal to 180 and having upper and lower guide channels formed therein, a semi-cylindrical Wall member having upper and lower flanged ends which are receivable in said guide channels for guiding said wall member during rotary 'movement of the latter relative to said body member,

said wall member when rotated from behind said body member serving to define with the latter a closed cylinder,

the lower end of said body member being secured within a base member, a cover member secured to the upper end of said body member, at least one tablet carrying tray arranged normally within the confines of said body member, a pin member afiixed at one end in said cover member and at the other end in said base member, and said tray being pivotally mounted on said pin member whereby said tray may be swung from the confines'of said body member when said wall member is rotated behind said,

, lower flanged ends which are receivable in said guide channels for guiding said wall member during rotary movement of the latter relative to said body member, said wall member when rotated from behind said body member serving to define with the latter a closed cylinder, the lower end of said body member being secured within a base member, a cover member secured to the upper end of said body member, a plurality of tablet carrying trays arranged in stacked relation normally within the confines of said body member, a pin member aifixed at one end in said cover member and at the other end in said base member, and said trays being pivotally mounted on said pin member whereby said trays may be individually swung from the confines of said body member when said wall member is rotated behind said body member to conveniently expose tablets carried thereby.

3. A tablet'dispenser comprising a semi-cylindrical body member having a circumferential extent substantially equal to 180 and having upper and lower guide channels formed therein, a semi-cylindrical wall member having ,upper and lower flanged ends which are receivable in said guide channels for guiding said wal-l member during rotary movement of the latter relative to said body member, said wall member when rotated from behind said body member serving to define with the latter a closed cylinder, the lower end of said body member being secured within a base member, the upper end of said base member being enlarged to envelop the lower portion of said slidable wall for preventing the latter from snapping out of said lower guide channel, a cover member secured to the upper end of said body member, the rim of said cover member being flanged downwardly to envelop the upper portion of said slidable wall for preventing the latter from snapping out of said upper guide channel, a plurality of tablet carrying trays arranged in stacked relation normally within the confines of said body member, a pin member afiixed at one end in said cover member and at the, other end in said base member, and said trays being pivotally mounted on said pin member whereby said trays may be individually swung from the confines of said body member when said wall member is rotated behind said body member to con veniently expose tablets carried thereby.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 742,040 Kurtz Oct. 20, 1903 749,671 Hall Jan. 12, 1904 827,821 Stapley Aug. 7 1906 2,312,041 Lillie Feb. 23, 1943 2,346,199 Taylor Apr. 11, 1944 2,411,950 Yzetta Dec. 3, 1946 2,474,639 Shprent-z June 28, 1949 2,519,156 Sparks Aug. 15, 1950 2,539,648 Wink Jan. 30, 1951 2,563,718 Gittord Aug. 7, 1951 

